The meaning of Israel’s apology to Turkey

Obama played a nefarious role in this whole “apology” and just watch – Erdogan will renege on his commitments by always raising the ante which is what Communists and Muslims always do.

by Caroline Glick

US President Barack Obama was on the line when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to apologize for the deaths of nine Turkish protesters aboard the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara on May 31, 2010.

For those who don’t remember, the Mavi Marmara was a Turkish ship that set sail in a bid to break Israel’s lawful maritime blockade of Hamas-controlled Gaza’s coastline. When Israeli naval commandos boarded the ship to interdict it, passengers on deck attacked them – in breach of international maritime law. Soldiers were stabbed, bludgeoned and thrown overboard. In a misguided attempt to show the good faith of Israeli actions, the naval commandos were sent aboard the ship armed with paintball guns. As a consequence, the soldiers pressed to defend themselves. In the hand-to-hand combat that ensued, nine of the Turkish attackers were killed.

The Mavi Marmara was an eminently predictable fight. The Turkish group that hired the boat was an al-Qaeda-affiliated Turkish NGO named IHH. In 1999, the Turkish government was so wary of IHH that it barred the group from participating in relief efforts following a devastating earthquake.

IHH’s fortunes shifted with the rise of its fellow Islamists in the AKP Justice and Development Party led by Recep Tayip Erdogan. [……..]

By 2010, Prime Minster Erdogan had a long track record of anti-Israel actions. Indeed, by 2010, Erdogan had effectively destroyed the strategic alliance Israel had developed with Turkey since 1949. In 2006, Erdogan was the first major international leader and NATO member to host Hamas terror chief Ismail Haniyeh. The same year he allowed Iran to use Turkish territory to transfer weaponry to Hezbollah during the Second Lebanon War.

In 2008, Erdogan openly sided with Hamas against Israel in Operation Cast Lead. In 2009, he called President Shimon Peres a murderer to his face.

By the time the flotilla to Gaza was organized, Erdogan had used Turkey’s position as a NATO member to effectively end the US-led alliance’s cooperative relationship with Israel, by refusing to participate in military exercises with Israel.

Following the incident, rather than apologize for his allied NGO’s gross violation of international maritime law and acts of wanton aggression against Israeli forces, Erdogan doubled down. He removed Turkey’s ambassador from Israel. […….] He had his court system open show trials against IDF soldiers and commanders. He stepped up his exploitation of Turkey’s NATO membership to block substantive military cooperation between Israel and NATO. [……..]

At the same time, Erdogan has cultivated close ties with President Barack Obama and his administration, and has spent millions of dollars on lobbying efforts on Capitol Hill to neutralize congressional opposition to his hostile behavior towards Israel and the US.

For three years Israel refused to apologize to Turkey. And then Obama came to Israel for a visit, and before he left the country, he had Netanyahu on the phone with Erdogan, apologizing for the loss of life of the Turkish protesters who stabbed and bludgeoned Israeli soldiers. Netanyahu also offered restitution to their families.

Israeli President Shimon Peres sought to silence the public outcry in Israel against Netanyahu’s action by soothingly saying that it was done to bury the past and move on to a better day in relations with Turkey.[…….]Israeli and international concerns that all or parts of Syria’s massive arsenal of chemical and biological weapons, as well as its ballistic missiles, will fall into the hands of jihadist forces have risen as jihadists, allied with al-Qaeda, have come to dominate the opposition to the Syrian regime.

Israel’s own concerns regarding the civil war in Syria have also escalated as rebel forces – affiliated with al-Qaeda — have taken over sections of the border region. UN observer forces deployed along Israel’s border with Syria since 1974 have been fleeing in droves, for Israel and Jordan. [……..]

Given the situation, the main questions that arise from Israel’s apology to Turkey are as follows: Is it truly a declaration with little intrinsic meaning, as Peres intimated? Should it simply be viewed as a means of overcoming a technical block to renewing Israel’s strategic alliance with Turkey? In other words, will the apology facilitate Turkish cooperation in stemming the rise of jihadist forces in Syria, and blocking the transfer of chemical and biological weapons and ballistic missiles to such actors? Finally, what does Obama’s central role in producing Israel’s apology say about his relationship with the Jewish state and the consequences of his visit on Israel’s alliance with the US and its position in the region? And finally, what steps should Israel consider in light of these consequences?

On Saturday, the Arab League convened in Doha, Qatar and discussed Israel’s apology to Turkey and its ramifications for pan-Arab policy. The Arab League member states considered the prospect of demanding similar apologies for its military operations in Lebanon, Judea, Samaria and Gaza.

The Arab League’s discussions point to the true ramifications of the apology for Israel. By apologizing for responding lawfully to unlawful aggression against the State of Israel and its armed forces, Israel did two things. First, Israel humiliated itself and its soldiers, and so projected an image of profound weakness. Due to this projected image, Israel has opened itself up to further demands for it to apologize for its other responses to acts of unlawful war and aggression against the state, its territory and its citizens from other aggressors. The Arab League like most of its member nations is in an official state of war with Israel. The Arabs wish to see Israel destroyed. Kicking a nation when it is down is a perfectly rational way for states that wish other states ill to behave. [……]

As for the future of Israel-Turkish cooperation on Syria, two things must be borne in mind. First, on Saturday Erdogan claimed that Netanyahu’s apology was insufficient to restore Turkish-Israel relations. He claimed that before he could take any concrete actions to restore relations, Israel would first have to compensate the families of the passengers from the Mavi Marmara killed while assaulting IDF soldiers with deadly force.

Beyond that, it is far from clear that Turkey shares Israel’s interests in preventing the rise of a jihadist regime in Syria allied with al-Qaeda. More than any other actor, Erdogan has played a central role in enabling the early jihadist penetration and domination of the ranks of the US-supported Syrian opposition forces. It is far from clear that the man who enabled these jihadists from rising to power shares Israel’s interest in preventing them from seizing Syria’s weapons of mass destruction. Moreover, if Turkey does share Israel’s interest in preventing the Syrian opposition from taking control over the said arsenals, it would cooperate with Israel in accomplishing this goal with or without an Israeli apology for its takeover of the Mavi Marmara.

So if interests, rather than sentiments dictate Turkey’s actions on Syria, as they dictate the interests of the Arab League in kicking Israel when it is perceived as being down, what does Obama’s central role in compelling Israel to apologize to Turkey tell us about his attitude towards Israel and how his attitude towards Israel is perceived by Israel’s neighbors, including Iran?

By forcing Israel to apologize to Turkey, Obama effectively forced Israel to acknowledge that it is in the wrong for lawful actions by its military taken in defense of international law and of Israel’s national security. That is, Obama sided with the aggressor – Turkey – over the victim – Israel. And in so doing, he signaled, deliberately or inadvertently, to the rest of Israel’s neighbors that the US is no longer siding with Israel in regional disputes. As a consequence, they now feel that it is reasonable for them to press their advantage and demand further Israeli apologies for daring to defend itself from their aggression.

Whether or not Obama meant to send this message, this is a direct consequence of his visit. Now Israel needs to consider its options for moving forward. For Israel’s allies in Congress, it is important to take a strong position on the issue. Members of Congress and Senate would do well to pass resolutions stating their conviction that Israel, while within its own rights to apologize, operated with reasonable force and wholly in accordance with international law in its interdiction of the Mavi Marmara, which was on an illegal voyage to provide aid and comfort for an internationally recognized terrorist organization in contravention of binding UN Security Council resolution 1379 from September 2001, which prohibits the proffering of such aid. […….]

Second, Israel should scale back the level of military assistance it receives from the US. While Obama was in Israel, he pledged to expand US military assistance to Israel in the coming years. By unilaterally scaling back US assistance and developing its domestic military industries, Israel would send a strong signal to its neighbors that it is not completely dependent on the US and as a consequence, the level of US support for Israel does not determine Israel’s capacity to continue to defend itself.

On a wider level, it is important for Israel to develop the means to end its dependency on the US. Under Obama, despite the support of the great majority of the public, the US has become an undependable ally to Israel, and indeed to the rest of the US’s allies as well. The more quickly Israel can minimize its dependence, the better it will be for Israel, for the US and for the stability of the region. The apology to Turkey was a strategic error. To minimize its consequences, Israel must boldly assert its interests in Syria, Iran, and throughout the region.

Read the rest- The meaning and consequences of Israel’s apology to Turkey

Rodan Addendum: Israel is in talks with Turkey to discuss compensation for the flotilla raid.

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister on Monday said Turkey has entered into talks with Israel regarding compensation for the families of the victims of the deadly 2010 Gaza flotilla raid, AFP reported.

“Officials delegated by the two sides will work on the compensation issue. We gave the kick-start for it today,” AFP quoted Bulent Arinc as telling reporters after a weekly cabinet meeting.

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We're not easily offended and don't want people to think they have to walk on eggshells around here (like at another place that shall remain nameless) but of course, there is a limit to everything.

Obama probably threatened to make public our de facto policy of nuclearizing Iran. Obama knows he can dis Israel without having to worry abou tthe Jewish vote. And he has more flexibility now, anyway, since he no longer has to worry about re-election. Obama’s in the cat-bird seat, and Bibi knows it.

You have to understand the Islamic mindset to see what is going on here.

Israel lost face, and face is all that matters to the Mohammedans. Turkey will make more demands. Indeed, they are already making more demands. This will also encourage the terrorist supporters (and the people on the Mavi Marmara were terrorist supporters)to make more attempts to breach Israel’s blockade of Gaza. Next time Israel should just sink the blockade runners.

Why does Egypt need tanks and fighter planes? YOur President wants to deny my right to keep and bear arms because he doesn’t see my need to do so, but he doesn’t ask why Egypt need heavy weapons. It isn’t for self-defense. No one is going to invade Egypt.

Khaled Said: If the revolution declares a framework for dealing with the West and America – they will accept it, kiss our hands, and double the aid they give us. We consider this aid to be jizya [poll tax], not regular aid.

Interviewer: Is this the rhetoric of the revolution?

Khaled Said: It certainly is.

Interviewer: The aid the Americans give us is the jizya tax they have to pay?

Khaled Said: Yes, it is. They pay it for the right of passage through our airspace and territorial waters.

I think that has more to do with the fact that the last time Egypt went to war with Israel they got stomped, rather than the exhorbitant jizya that the US has paid to Egypt for the last thirty years. Egypt wants fighter jets and tanks for a future war with Israel. We are arming our enemy. If we didn’t supply Egypt with heavy weapons, they wouldn’t be a threat to anybody. They are too poor to buy tanks on the open market, and Russia isn’t giving tanks away any more.

ALEPPO, Syria — The evidence was incontrovertible, captured on video and posted on YouTube for all the world to see. During a demonstration against the Syrian regime, Wael Ibrahim, a veteran activist, had tossed aside a banner inscribed with the Muslim declaration of faith.

And that, decreed the officers of the newly established Sharia Authority set up to administer rebel-held Aleppo, constitutes a crime under Islamic law, punishable in this instance by 10 strokes of a metal pipe.

The beating administered last month offered a vivid illustration of the extent to which the Syrian revolution has strayed from its roots as a largely spontaneous uprising against four decades of Assad family rule. After mutating last year into a full-scale war, it is moving toward what appears to be an organized effort to institute Islamic law in areas that have fallen under rebel control.

Building on the reputation they have earned in recent months as the rebellion’s most accomplished fighters, Islamist units are seeking to assert their authority over civilian life, imposing Islamic codes and punishments and administering day-to-day matters such as divorce, marriage and vehicle licensing.

As for Jordan, The Hashemites are ruthless and backed by Israel. The Israelis and Hashemites will make a stand there and that is what could trigger the next big Mideast war.

The McCain Wing of the GOP is pushing for war in Syria. If Obama does go to war, want to bet the narrative will be that the GOP forced him to go to war. Then when the body bags come home, Syria will be blamed on the GOP.

Yup and the Palis in Jordan will throw in with them. Lets not forgot Al-Qaeda’s leader in Iraq was Zarqawi, who was a Palestinian Jordanian. There are rumors that the leader of Syrian AQ is his cousin.

Jordan is where I think it will hit the fan. Israel will not sit by and allow The Hashemites to fall.

The Palis under Arafat have already tried to overthrow Jordan once. There’s no doubt that they’ll throw in with the Muslim Brotherhood in the next iteration of the Arab Spring®. Whether they’ll win is an open question. They’ve been fighting two years in Syria and they haven’t won there yet.

They didn’t use the word filibuster, but the action was implied. Sens. Rand Paul, Mike Lee and Ted Cruz are sending a strong message to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid: We three will block any legislation that imposes more gun restrictions.

The trio are hand delivering the letter containing that message to Mr. Reid on Tuesday, Politico reports. The news agency was given an advance copy of the letter.

Let’s hope they stick to their, ahem, guns on this. I don’t tust the Republican leadership in the House, but it will destroy the Republican Party if they pass this nonsense.

The Palis under Arafat have already tried to overthrow Jordan once. There’s no doubt that they’ll throw in with the Muslim Brotherhood in the next iteration of the Arab Spring®. Whether they’ll win is an open question. They’ve been fighting two years in Syria and they haven’t won there yet.

There were at least 8 documented attempted assasinations of King Hussein (the Jordanian, not the Kenyan) and I think they were evenly split between the paleos and the muzzbros.

The Al Nusrah Front, which is al Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate, and allied rebel groups overran a military base and several checkpoints in southern Syria. The victories put the Al Nusrah Front in control of an area that borders both Israel’s Golan Heights and Jordan.

Ok this is working out well. Not.
Al Nusra Front Seizes Control Of Border Area With Israel’s Golan Heights…
The Al Nusrah Front, which is al Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate, and allied rebel groups overran a military base and several checkpoints in southern Syria. The victories put the Al Nusrah Front in control of an area that borders both Israel’s Golan Heights and Jordan.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Florida Sen. Marco Rubio swung by Rand Paul’s home state here on Monday where he effectively made one thing clear: He’s no Rand Paul — particularly on foreign policy.

In a soaring speech on the University of Louisville campus, Rubio made the case for American military might around the world, vowing that the U.S cannot “retreat” from international conflicts, must encourage democracy and continue spending money overseas aimed at bolstering the country’s image.

Rubio really needs to back off the nation building garbage.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Florida Sen. Marco Rubio swung by Rand Paul’s home state here on Monday where he effectively made one thing clear: He’s no Rand Paul — particularly on foreign policy.
In a soaring speech on the University of Louisville campus, Rubio made the case for American military might around the world, vowing that the U.S cannot “retreat” from international conflicts, must encourage democracy and continue spending money overseas aimed at bolstering the country’s image.

Khaled Said: If the revolution declares a framework for dealing with the West and America – they will accept it, kiss our hands, and double the aid they give us. We consider this aid to be jizya [poll tax], not regular aid.
Interviewer: Is this the rhetoric of the revolution?
Khaled Said: It certainly is.
Interviewer: The aid the Americans give us is the jizya tax they have to pay?
Khaled Said: Yes, it is. They pay it for the right of passage through our airspace and territorial waters.
Interviewer: They pay to keep us quiet?
Khaled Said: They pay so that we will let them be.
Interviewer: Is that a fatwa?
Khaled Said: Indeed. The aid constitutes jizya.

Good morning. I want to see if I have this right, forcing Bibi to apologise
to Turkey will promote peace & understanding?
Erdogan & the rest of the Islamists will not take it as a victory over the
Zionist State?
Obama is so fabulous to engineer this./

It’s been in the works for awhile. But it won’t be the bank accounts. It’s coming via the new agency, Consumer Financail Protection. They’re talking about ‘managing’ all 401k/SEP/IRA accounts so that ‘seniors don’t get scammed’.

I’d expect a run on the banks in the Eurozone. You have to know that your money simply isn’t safe in a bank there now. Period. And yeah, there’s no doubt the Democrats are looking at 401Ks and thinking that they could do that too. The only problem is that they get to do it once, after which no Democrat will be able to win any elective office outside of California and New York. That thought may make them pause.

I would not have worried about it before – with the Republican House, but now that Boehner seems hell bent on giving away the store, I’m not so sure. They are in such desperate need of this money – the Democrats have been working overtime trying to maintain the fantasy that the unfunded entitlements like Social Security and Medicare are “sound” that the house of cards will come crashing down if they can’t somehow get their hands on the trillions in cash infusion from the 401(k)s. And that whole “we’ll take your 401(k) contribution and it’ll got into an investment account and we’ll pay you back.” Another shell game with a phoney lock box.

The answer lies in the nature of our banking system, in the fact that both commercial banks and thrift banks (mutual-savings and savings-and-loan) have been systematically engaging in fractional-reserve banking: that is, they have far less cash on hand than there are demand claims to cash outstanding. For commercial banks, the reserve fraction is now about 10 percent; for the thrifts it is far less.
[]
Yes, the FDIC and FSLIC “work,” but only because the unlimited monopoly power to print money can “work” to bail out any firm or person on earth. For it was precisely bank runs, as severe as they were that, before 1933, kept the banking system under check, and prevented any substantial amount of inflation.
[]
Putting an end to inflation requires not only the abolition of the Fed but also the abolition of the FDIC and FSLIC. At long last, banks would be treated like any firm in any other industry. In short, if they can’t meet their contractual obligations they will be required to go under and liquidate. It would be instructive to see how many banks would survive if the massive governmental props were finally taken away.

Murray N. Rothbard (1926–1995) was dean of the Austrian School. He was an economist, economic historian, and libertarian political philosopher.

@ Rodan:
Remember, you were one of the persons that thought going into Iraq was a good idea.

I initially supported it becasue it would be a smash them up, then smash Iran, then Smash Syria, smash the Saudis and get the hell out. I was wrong and was misled. Unlike others on the Right, I admit I was wrong.

You on the other still belive Obama’s BS. He is lying about Al Qaeda being decimated. He is supporting them in Syria and yet you still love that man.

Just remembered – You’re in California, right? So didn’t the state just renege on a tax break for small businesses? As in, “not only is the tax break going away, we’re going to hit you up for back taxes AND INTEREST” ??

They’ve been working toward this for years. Oblahblah really needs that House to go Democrat in 2014 so he can pound the final nail in the coffin of America before he leaves office. You can’t save for your retirement anymore. The government will take care of it for you.

The only reason I’m still in California is my house isn’t “even” yet – plus I only have about seven more years before I retire. Once I’m no longer working, I’m packing my bags and heading to Texas. I hear San Antonio is nice.

“American Bulldog” mix my ass. That animal is part Pit Bull, and Kelly’s lamebrain daughter lost control of it. On a public beach. Where it would have gone after someone else’s small dog if that defenseless baby seal hadn’t been available.

@ lobo91:
@ Rodan:
“American Bulldog” mix my ass. That animal is part Pit Bull, and Kelly’s lamebrain daughter lost control of it. On a public beach. Where it would have gone after someone else’s small dog if that defenseless baby seal hadn’t been available.

I saw an episode of “People’s Court” where the idiots gave the leash of a large dog to an 18-month-old to hold and then were shocked when the dog broke free and attacked a dog a neighbor was walking.

The law is plain — you must have the dog under your control at all time. Period. You do not send a 7-year-old out to walk your 100-lb. German Shepherd. When Offspring was little, he wanted to walk Rocky and I said “no”. What I did was buy a second leash that clipped on so that he could pretend he was walking him with me.

From the video I saw, he looked like a Bulldog. They are deceptively strong. We used to have one down the street, Turbo, who decided he loved me. He could – and did – knock me down so he could lick my face. Thank god he was a sweet dog.

@ eaglesoars:
The only reason I’m still in California is my house isn’t “even” yet — plus I only have about seven more years before I retire. Once I’m no longer working, I’m packing my bags and heading to Texas. I hear San Antonio is nice.

@ Carolina Girl:
She raised her dog wrong and probably made it agressive.

Not necessarily. A LOT of dogs react PROTECTIVELY when they encounter the unfamiliar.

Had my German Shepard Dylan on the boat with us one weekend. Our dock neighbors showed up. One of their boys had broken a leg and was in a cast and on crutches. Dylan went after him. I tackled him on the fly and we both ended up in the river. Took two grown men to fish that dog out.

I spent the weekend socializing Dylan with that boy and Dylan reacted well and would even walk up to the club house with him.

Went back home at the end of the summer. Was walking Dylan on campus – on lead – and a young boy who looked very much like our dock neighbor walked by. No cast, no crutches. Dylan went after him. Fortunately, he immediately obeyed my DOWN command. But he wasn’t happy about it.

@ lobo91:
I just got this image of pretty puppy walking along and suddenly — “Squirrel!!!!”

I was walking her one morning at the apartment complex we lived in before we bought the house, and we came around the corner of the office. There were two deer standing by the pool. One was drinking from the pool, and the other was sampling the ornamental shrubbery.

Leia, who will chase and rabbit or squirrel within 100 yards, completely froze. She had no idea what she was looking at.

The North Koreans are bug-fucking insane. That is the cornerstone of their foreign policy. We should have nuked them when Eisenhower was President. We’ve been paying fo rthat failuer of foreign policy ever since.

Small dogs like to yap, to tie it in with another dominant theme of the thread. North Korea is pretty insignificant. If they were crazy enough to use their nukes, though, they could gut Seoul. That would be a catastrophe. Yeah, sure, we’d erradicate them for it, but like the Iranians, I am not sure you are dealing with rational actors here. They may not care that we can exterminate them. Or (more probably) they may not believe we’d do it no matter what they do. A threat that they know will never be carried out has little deterrant force. And I’d say under Obama our nuclear fist is about as empty a threat as it has ever been.